Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost has been elected as the new Pope and shepherd of the Catholic Church. He has chosen the name Pope Leo XIV—and is making history as the first American-born Pope.
Many are celebrating his election, including Fr. Denis Wilde, an Augustinian priest and leader with Priests for Life. Fr. Wilde remembers Pope Leo from their days at Villanova University in the 1970s. Back then, he was a young seminarian. “He was a humble man who was not into himself, but into the Lord, Jesus Christ,” Wilde said.
Even as a student, Pope Leo cared deeply about protecting Life. At Villanova University, he helped start a group called Villanovans for Life, which still exists today more than 50 years later. This early commitment to protecting the vulnerable has defined his ministry throughout the years—and now shapes the vision he brings to the papacy.
Throughout his work in the Church, Pope Leo XIV has spoken out against abortion and stood up for the value of all human Life—especially the most vulnerable, like the unborn, the elderly, and those with disabilities.
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“We cannot build a just society if we discard the weakest, whether the child in the womb or the elderly in their frailty—for they are both gifts from God,” he once said as a Cardinal.
In a recent homily, he shared a powerful message about mercy and Life:
“God’s mercy calls us to protect every Life, especially those society overlooks—the child yet to be born and the elderly nearing their journey’s end—because each bears Christ’s face.”
Pope Leo XIV has passionately shared Christ’s message of the dignity of every human being, from the unborn child to the elderly and disabled.
Now, as he leads the Catholic Church, his witness challenges us all to see every person as a gift and to stand fearlessly for the most vulnerable among us. Join us in prayer for Pope Leo XIV, that the Lord will protect and guide him.
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